The Perfect Gift
by rhyejess
Summary: "A perfect present" future!fic, Percy/Annabeth


"Keep your eyes closed," Percy warned for the millionth time.

"I _am_," Annabeth snapped. She'd already proven her willingness to trust him; she had let him drag her, blind, into the ocean. She'd felt a primitive stirring of terror when the waves had closed over her head, but moments later she'd felt herself enclosed in an air bubble. She'd kept her eyes slammed shut through all of it. Behind her eyelids, she'd watched the sunlight fade as they descended through the water. The sensation of sinking unnerved her. She should have known that Percy had something fishy- pun intended- planned when he'd proposed this little sailing trip. They'd been on the sea half the day to get here. Whatever he had planned better be worth it, she thought.

When he finally told her that she could open her eyes, she found that it was- it was _so_ worth it. She gasped, the sound echoing through the little air bubble she was sharing with Percy. He grinned when he saw her delight.

"Percy! I... wow." She stood in the middle of a vast landscape of underwater buildings. There was something vaguely Grecian about their design, but there were also elements that didn't belong. A towering archway flanked by Doric columns gave Annabeth a glimpse of an interior Hasht-Bihisht design- a Persian architectural element never to her knowledged paired with Doric columns. Well, until now. Still stranger, the roofs were far more modern- almost Frank Gehry-esque. She wondered how they'd crafted such flowing shapes out of what seemed to her to be stone. A lazy reef shark exited the large Hasht-Bihisht building directly in front of them, oblivious to its amazing surroundings.

"What is this place?" Annabeth asked, part of her mind still busy cataloguing the architecture around her. She had her suspicions.

Percy confirmed them immediately. "Atlantis," he answered. "Turns out it's not so lost after all."

Annabeth laughed.

"What?" Percy asked

"It's not lost as in 'no one knows where it is', it's lost as in 'abandoned'. No one lives here anymore."

"Oh. Well, the reef shark begs to differ," Percy answered.

"It used to be a real city. I mean a huge above-water seaport."

Annabeth watched Percy's enthusiasm fade. "You already know all about it, then?" He clearly thought he'd found something unique to share with her.

"Well, in theory, but Percy- I could never have seen it without your help. And the _architecture_." She was sure her voice betrayed her awe. "It's _amazing_."

"It does look kind of weird," Percy commented as he stared down the strange classical-modern Hasht-Bihisht in front of them.

Annabeth smiled. "It's _avant-guard_."

"What does that mean?"

"Weird."

Percy laughed. "If you want we can explore it a bit." He glanced up overhead- they could still see sunshine playing off the wave-tops fifty yards or so above.

"Just a little while," Annabeth answered. "Some of us get wet jumping into the water, and it's not warm down here."

"Sorry," Percy offered sheepishly.

Annabeth shrugged. She grabbed Percy's hand and led him along beside her into the ruins.

They spent the better part of two hours exploring, but Annabeth was cold, tired, and hungry, and she'd heard Percy's stomach growl more than once as well. He probably wouldn't say anything. This was her early Christmas present and he wouldn't want to interrupt her enjoyment of it. Still, as much as she had left to explore here, she knew it was time to return to the surface. They were standing in the middle of the Hasht-Bihisht. There was no sunlight inside the buildings. She could almost feel ghosts pressing around them in the darkness. Annabeth imaged them going about their daily business. This may have been a political center or a marketplace; it was the largest structure in downtown Atlantis and so clearly had some importance. She sighed regretfully. "Time to go."

"I hope you liked it."

"Percy," Annabeth turned to him. He was close to her inside their personal bubble, yet she leaned closer. "This was amazing. The perfect gift."

"Oh. This wasn't your gift," he said.

"What?" Annabeth didn't like being caught off guard. "You said you were giving me a gift-"

"Yeah." He seemed nervous. He hesitated and then jammed his hands in his pockets.

"Then what-"

Percy was tense. She had seen him fearlessly face dangers that mortals could not imagine. Strangely, he looked more frightened now than when he had faced Kronos.

As he withdrew his hands from his pocket, she understood. He held the small black box out to her. "Marry me?"


End file.
